Review Blog

Oct 17 2014

Edith Cowan: A quiet woman of note by Hazel Edwards

Ill. by Angela Grzegrzolka. New Frontier, 2014. ISBN
9781925059021
Edith Cowan's face graces one side of the fifty dollar note but most
would not be aware of her past and the reforms she was able to
introduce. Known as the first woman elected to any Australian
Parliament, she served the disadvantaged, especially women and
children in Perth for many years prior to her election.
Edith, born in 1861, enjoyed a happy childhood at Glengarry, a
station out of Geralton, until her mother became ill and died when
Edith was seven years old. Not long after, the family was broken up
when their father could not cope. Edith and her older sister Blanche
were sent to boarding school in Perth and her younger brothers sent
to live with relatives. Edith's future interest in social reform for
women was cemented when her father, an increasingly violent man, was
found guilty of murdering his second wife and subsequently hanged.
Edith married James Cowan, a court registrar, who through his work
saw many disadvantaged families and encouraged Edith to visit and
help the poor and needy. She continued her social work whilst
raising five of her own children, serving the community as a
magistrate on the Children's Court, receiving an OBE for her
contributions to the Red Cross during WW1 and later entering
parliament, all the time championing social reform for women and
children at a time when they had few of the rights we enjoy today.
Whilst I found the text to be quite repetitive at times, Hazel
Edwards has obviously been keen to impress the reader with the
significance of Edith's achievements overcoming a socially and
personally damaging childhood through education and commitment.
Sue Keane